The Ante-Nicene Church · AD 180–313
Demetrius of Alexandria
d. c. 232 · Bishop of Alexandria · Alexandria
The Ante-Nicene Church
Who Demetrius of Alexandria was
Bishop of Alexandria for forty-three years (c. 189–232), who appointed the teenaged Origen head of the catechetical school and then, decades later, became his great antagonist — condemning Origen in two synods for having been ordained presbyter abroad (by the bishops of Palestine) without his own leave, and driving him from Egypt to Caesarea. Whether the quarrel was jurisdictional or doctrinal, or simple jealousy of the world-famous teacher his own city had produced, the sources dispute. Demetrius also, Eusebius says, extended episcopal organization across Egypt. His long reign frames the golden and stormy age of Alexandrian scholarship.
Also listed in the bishops of Alexandria.
Common questions
When did Demetrius die?
Demetrius of Alexandria is dated d. c. 232 in the archive, which places Demetrius in the Ante-Nicene Church (AD 180–313). The dating is traditional and approximate; the archive marks it as uncertain rather than fixing a year the sources do not give.
Which early sources mention Demetrius?
Demetrius of Alexandria is named in 2 primary-source passages catalogued here, drawn from Eusebius of Caesarea. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Demetrius from?
The archive associates Demetrius of Alexandria with Alexandria.
Who were Demetrius’ contemporaries?
The archive links Demetrius of Alexandria to 4 other figures, including Origen of Alexandria, Heraclas of Alexandria, Clement of Alexandria and Alexander of Jerusalem. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Primary-source mentions (2)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Ecclesiastical History VI.8
c. AD 325But Demetrius, having nothing else that he could say against him, save this deed of his boyhood, accused him bitterly, and dared to include with him in these accusations those who had raised him to the presbyterate.Eusebius of Caesarea · VI.8 · source text
Ecclesiastical History VI.26
c. AD 325Not long afterward Demetrius, bishop of the church of Alexandria, died, having held the office for forty-three full years, and Heraclas succeeded him.Eusebius of Caesarea · VI.26 · source text
Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 177 · Persecution at Lyon and Vienne, AD 177
- AD 180 · The Scillitan martyrs, AD 180
- AD 190 · The Quartodeciman controversy, AD 190
- AD 202 · Perpetua and Felicity martyred, AD 202
Place
Places served
The one place the sources put Demetrius.